Combined antirattler thill coupling and support.



No. 884,488. PATENTED APR. 14, 1808.

, 4 A, W. 00X. COMBINED ANTIRATTLBR THI'LL COUPLING AND SUPPORT;

.APPLIGATION FILED MAB.. 20, 1907.

wil/111101111.'

man

PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER COX, OF PROVO, UTAH.

COMBINED ANTIRATTLER THILL GOUPLING AND SUPPORT. v

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April 14, 190s.

Application filed March 20, 1907. Serial No. 363,453.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER Cox, a citizen of the United States, residingat Provo city, county of Utah, and State of Utah, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Antirattler Thill Couplings and Supports,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to anti-rattler thill cou lings and supports. V

T 1e object of the present invention is the provision of a novel thillcoupling and support having means whereby the thills may be readilydetached when desired and also provided with an improved device forautomatically locking the thill when it is raised above its ordinaryposition, thus facilitating hitching of the horse as well as providingmeans for holding the thill out of the way when it is desired to have itthus positioned.

Another object is to provide a thill coupling and support of novelconstruction which will be provided with novel means for taking up alllost motion and thus preventingratthng.

In carrying out the invention I employ certain improved features ofconstruction and novel arrangements and adaptations of parts all ofwhich are set forth fully hereinafter and recited in the appendedclaims.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1, 1s a side view, largely 1nsection, of the 1nvention; Fig. 2 is a detail plan view of the thillcoupling member, showing the thill and thill iron in section; and Fig. 3is a sectional view showing a modified form of rubber spring.

The numeral 1 designates the part of the coupling which is secured bythe usual U- shaped clevis or yoke 2 to the axle 3. This coupling member1 is provided with a transverse opening which has three olf-sets 4, 5and 6, and an entrance mouth 7, the latter being closed by a removableplate 8 held by one of the legs of yoke 2 and provided with an up-turnedend 9 entering a notch in the coupling member 1.

The thill coupling member 10 is provided with a 'fork 11 having acoupling-pin 12 which extends transversely thereof and has its ends.swaged or expanded at 13, thus rmly securing it. Thiscoupling-pin 12 isof general elliptical form in cross-section, but by preference morerounded at 14 at its rear side than at its forward side. The

coupling-pin 12 is of slightly less Width,

along its minor axis than the Width of the neck 7 so that it may bereadily passed through said neck 7 in attaching or detaching the partsof the thill coupling.

Slidable within a chamber in the thill member 10 is a cup 15, in whichis a coil spring 16. As indicated in Fig. 3, a rubber spring 16a may besubstituted for the spring 16. Threaded through the forward end of thethill member 10 is an adjusting or tension screw 17 whose fiat inner endbears against the spring 16.

The forwardend of the cou ling member 1 is flat but the upper part o'this forward end is rounded at 18. The bottom of the cup 15 bearsagainst the flat forward end of the coupling member 1 when the parts ofthe coupling are in normal position, but when the thill member 10 israised, the cup bears against the rounded part 18.

A detachable plate 19, carried by the member 10, covers the oint ofmembers 1 and 10 and excludes dust and dirt.

The numeral 2() designates an abutment which has a curvedface'conforming to the curvature 14 of the pin 12, and back of thisabutment is a rubber' cushion 21, which is adapted to be crowded intothe off-set 4. The abutment and cushion 21 are entirely separate andindependent pieces and are loosely positioned in the slot or opening ofthe coupling member 1.

` When the parts of the cou ling are in normal position, the pin 12 lies1n the off-set 6, being held there by the spring 16 and having itsabutment on the abutment 20, backed by cushion 21, and the thill memberitself is enabled to rock slightly owing to the movement of the animal,without dislocating the parts. When, however, it is desired to supportthe thill in raised position, the thill is lifted sufficiently for thepin 12 to clear the off-set 6 and it then snaps into the locking off-set5, still bearing against the abutment 20, which is shifted by theexpansion of the cushion 21 to accommodate itself to the new position ofthe in 12. The thill and couping 10 are then ocked in the raisedposition. A slight downward fall will bring the parts to normalposition. Whichever position the parts are in, that position ismaintained, principally by the spring 16, but is also assisted by thecushion 21.

Any desired tension may be placed upon the spring 16 by adjusting thescrew 17. To

entirely detach the thill member 10 from member 1, the nut holding theplate S is removed and the plate taken ofi. The tension of ythe spring16, being lessened by unscrewing the screw 17, the abutment 2() andcushion 21 can be removed through neck 7 and the pin 12 then made topass through said neck.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a thill coupling and. support, the combination with a thillycoupling member having a recess provided with a coupling-pin bearing anda locking notch, of a cushioned abutment located in said recess, anotherthill coupling member having -a coupling-pin received in the recess andbearing against the abutment and normally received in the coupling-pinbearing aforesaid, said parts being so disposed that when the thillcoupling member last-named is raised the coupling-pin is shifted intothe locking notch, and

vspring means carried by the last-named thill coupling member andbearing against the first-named thill coupling member.

2. In a thill coupling and support, the combination with a hook-shapedthill coupling member having a coupling-pin bearing and. a separatelocking notch, of another thill coupling member composed of side piecesadapted to straddle the hook-shaped coupling member and having acoupling-pin connecting said side pieces and normally received in thecoupling-pin bearing aforesaid, said parts being so disposed that whenthe thill coupling member last named is raised the coupling-pin isvshifted into the locking notch and'held thereby, and spring means forholding the coupling-pin in its bearing or locking notch.

In testimony whereof, l hereunto a'liX my signature in presence of twoWitnesses.

vWALTER COX.

Witnesses'.

ALFRED L. BOOTH, HARVEY CLUFF.

